Ep 14. Hair Fairy

In season 6 episode 14 of Dirty Jobs, titled "Hair Fairy," host Mike Rowe travels to a wig factory in China where he gets a firsthand look at the process of making synthetic hair for wigs and other hairpieces. The episode begins with Mike arriving in Beijing and quickly realizing that he's in for one of his toughest jobs yet.

Upon arriving at the factory, Mike is introduced to his guide for the day, a woman named Wang Wei who speaks fluent English and serves as his translator. He then gets a chance to meet some of the workers who are responsible for creating the synthetic hair. These workers are primarily young women who spend their days cutting and blending different shades of hair to create a seamless look for the finished product.

Mike starts off by observing the workers as they carefully separate and clamp bunches of hair onto metal rods, which are then placed in a machine that heats up and applies chemicals to the hair to give it a natural look and texture. The process is repetitive and exhausting, with the workers spending hours at a time in close quarters with each other as they manipulate the hair.

Next, Mike is taken to a different part of the factory where he's tasked with cutting and styling synthetic hair samples. As someone who's never cut hair before, Mike struggles to get the technique right at first, but he eventually gets the hang of it under the supervision of one of the workers. He's impressed by the skill and precision that goes into every step of the production process.

Throughout the episode, Mike learns about the different types of hair used in wigs (including hair from horses and yak), the challenges of creating hair for people with darker skin tones, and the ethical considerations that go into sourcing and using real hair for wigs.

One of the most notable moments in the episode comes when Mike gets a chance to meet a customer who's in the market for a custom wig. This customer is a middle-aged man from the UK who suffers from alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss. He's come all the way to China to select the hair that will be used in his new wig, and he takes the time to explain to Mike how important it is to him to have a wig that looks and feels as natural as possible. Mike is moved by the man's story and the way in which the wig factory is working to make his dream a reality.

Overall, "Hair Fairy" provides an eye-opening and often emotional look at the world of wig production. It's a reminder of the often-overlooked roles that people play in creating everyday products, and a tribute to the hardworking men and women who make it all possible.